141. A big reveal
141
A BIG REVEAL
Daire
“Well?” Nate was hovering behind me.
“I can’t look.” How many times had we done this? I’d pee on the stick and we’d be disappointed. My grizzly was hiding and wouldn’t speak to me. Was that because he knew it was bad news or he didn’t want to hear if it was?
“I’ll do it.”
Which was worse, me looking at the stick or me studying Nate’s face after he peered at it? There was no answer to that question. “No, I’ll do it.” Best to get it over with. I was prepared for the worst, or thought I was. But each negative result was a kick in the gut.
Picking up the stick, I sighed. Nope, always with the one line, never two. Don’t we deserve two pink lines? I silently asked the universe. It didn’t respond so I buried my face in Nate’s shirt and sobbed.
“I’m sorry, babe.”
He rubbed my back as one would a baby and all I could think of was that I wanted a baby to comfort.
Once my crying jag was over, I said, “Let’s get out of here.” We’d been escaping to my parents’ lake house more frequently since we’d been trying to get pregnant. I sent a message to the manor group list. We had two. One with Anthony and one without. I felt kinda bad that he wasn’t invited to so many of our gatherings, but he was in a relationship and was at their place a lot, so I hoped he didn’t notice when we all disappeared.
Who’s up for a weekend at the lake?
Me!
Me too.
Us as well .
After all the shenanigans with Archer’s arrest and us not being pregnant, everyone needed a change of scenery. An hour later, we had food in the car, drinks and takeout, and we headed for the lake. Our manor family had sort of taken over the house. There was hardly a time during the week or at the weekend when at least one of us wasn’t there. My parents used to love the place but these days preferred the beach house.
Our usual routine was to eat and then shift. Neil and one other person would look after the kids. I was so envious of my human friend and his cute little pregnant belly.
“When we shift today, can we go right around the lake, Dad?” Toby asked.
“I don’t see why not.” Martin turned to Neil. “You okay with that?”
My friend nodded. “I’ll be here with my feet up. Daire will be doing any running around.”
It was my turn to stay behind and help Neil because it wasn’t fair that he was always the one babysitting.
“Are we expecting any one else?” Toby asked as he jerked his head toward the road and a car that had just turned into the long driveway.
Ryder, whose health had improved, had already shifted and Archer and Ivor were naked, ready to take their fur.
“No.” I peered at the cloud of dust. “Does that look like Anthony’s car?”
“Mmmm. It does,” Archer agreed.
Martin grabbed his phone. “Ummm Daire you sent the invitation to the wrong group.”
“Huh?” I was staring at the car that had pulled up. My brain was refusing to process that Anthony was here, two of us were stark naked and Ryder’s stag was about to take off into the woods.
“Daire, you sent the invitation to the group with Anthony.” That was Toby.
Anthony got out. His eyes darted from two naked omegas to the stag and he sagged against the car. “Is this why you rarely invite me to come here?”
Damn. He had noticed. Big oops.
“You all get naked and… and… what? Have an orgy.”
“No!” everyone yelled.
“Well, the naked bit is sort of true,” I added.
“Daire, shut it,” Micah snapped as he waved at Anthony. “It’s not what you think. Come and have some food and a beer.”
But Ryder chose that moment to shift. Now he was standing among us, naked, instead of his stag.
Anthony fell back against the car and he fumbled with the door handle.
“It’s just me,” Ryder announced.
Anthony’s eyes slid back and he slipped to the ground, banging his head in the process.
“Quick, he’s fainted,” I yelled.
Micah and I picked up our human friend and carried him inside. As we put him on the sofa, he stirred. When his eyes opened, he grinned and sat up. “I had the weirdest dream.” He glanced around. “Hold on. I’m at the lake house and you’re all here. And Daire you’re wearing the same shirt you had on in my dream.” He fell back on the couch and mumbled, “It wasn’t a dream.”
Ryder, who was now fully clothed, stepped forward. “Whatever it was, it was a dream. We’ve all just been sitting around eating dinner.”
Nate put up his hand. “Best to do this now and get it over with. Rip the bandaid off.”
Anthony curled up and crossed his arms over his chest. “Are you going to hurt me?” he asked in a wavering voice.
“Look at me.” Neil sat beside Anthony. “I’m human, just like you.”
“Human?” Anthony reared away from Neil. “I assumed we were all human.”
Neil took Anthony’s hand and explained how when he and I were at school together, I spilled the deets about shifters one night.
Anthony folded his arms when Neil finished talking. “I don’t believe you.”
Neil sighed. “Really? Even though you saw Ryder’s stag?”
Anthony’s gaze rested on Ryder.
“Do you want him to show you his beast again?”
Anthony shook his head. “What are you?” He was looking at me.
“I’m a bear shifter. Grizzly.”
“Would you hurt me?”
“He wouldn’t, so no, and neither would I.”
Anthony wrapped his arms around his legs. “Sure. I’d like to see.” Neil held his hand and I walked onto the patio and removed my clothes. My beast was looking forward to a demonstration. It wasn’t often he got to educate a human.
His fur rippled along my arms and he took over. He let out a huge grizzly growl and turned to face the living room. Anthony gulped and Neil hugged him close while whispering, “It’s okay.”
Taking my skin, I put on my pants and wandered back into the room.
“And this is why you all disappear sometimes and I wonder why I’m the only one in either the manor or the houses on either side?”
“We’re really sorry, Anthony,” Toby said as Charlie toddled over to Anthony and offered him a toy. “We like you and consider you family, but we’re not really supposed to tell humans about us.”
Anthony jerked his head at Neil.
I piped up. “Too much beer.”
“What about Charlie? Is he a…?” Anthony stumbled over the words.
Nate helped him out. “Shifter.”
“No, our little boy is human, but he’s been around shifters since he became part of our family,” Neil explained.
“Now what?” Ivor asked. “My beast is pushing me to hunt.”
“Mine too,” Archer agreed.
“Hunt?” Anthony squeaked.
“Deer and rabbits,” Neil explained .
“Go, everyone.” As Neil and I were babysitting, I picked up Charlie in one arm and took Jasper from Archer. Anthony watched wide-eyed as everyone shifted. Only Micah remained. In Anthony’s eyes, my friend’s unicorn would be the most impressive.
“Watch Micah,” I told Anthony.
“We’ve had wolves, foxes, a stag and hedgehog. I’ve seen your grizzly, Daire.” Anthony studied Micah. He wasn’t ready for this. No human would be. Even shifters were open-mouthed if they caught a glimpse of Micah’s beast.
“Ready?” I asked.
Micah transformed. He pranced back and forth in front of the house. I guessed that was for Anthony’s benefit. And then he raced into the woods. Anthony’s eyes grew wide, his mouth formed an O and he fainted again.
“Oops.”
I fanned our friend’s face and when he came to, he mumbled, “I saw a unicorn.”
After Anthony drank a glass of water and Neil wrapped a blanket around his shoulders, I told him, “This is a secret. You can’t share this with other humans.”
“My daddy is a unicorn,” Elune announced.
“Someone should tell Elune it’s a secret,” Anthony said.
“She understands. We’re family and she doesn’t discuss it at school.” Shifter kids learned that rule very early. And if they didn’t, most humans assumed they had vivid imaginations.
“I’m glad you know,” I told Anthony. “Now we don’t need to pretend or lie. And you can be with us when we come here to shift.”
I took my phone and deleted the manor group without Anthony. Now he was in the know, he was truly part of our family.
“You must be hungry.” Neil pointed to the food laid out on the table. “Finding out about shifters makes you want to eat. Trust me. I know.”
“Yeah, I’m starving.”